I'll post a new chapter . . . eventually. Still wakin' up.
EDIT: Over 10,000 views!
CHAPTER ELEVEN:
Council Politics
Cloak gathered himself, and glared daggers at the donkey councilor.
"As you may have noticed, or not, I am
not my grandfather." Cloak said with cold tones. "And my grandfather wouldn't think twice about associating with Dwellers."
"I beg to differ!"
"Beg all you want, I don't care." Cloak quipped. "You didn't know him, like you like to pretend you do.
I did. In any case, it's a moot point. You know the reason I've come. Now I ask you -- what are you going to do about it?"
Silence. Cloak's eyes narrowed and he folded his arms against his chest.
"Oh, I see." he said scathingly. "You're not going to do
anything about it. You ignore Malice's reemergence, and now this."
"Malice is dead!"
"She is not. I've fought her countless times, foiled her schemes. All with more assistance from my RAFian friends and allies -- more help then I
ever got from the likes of you six. No, you are content pretending that she no longer exists. Content in your ignorance that she's once been able to acquire the Forbidden Power -- which was destroyed by the Dwellers that you look down on -- that she released the Bibliophaetos, among other things that I'm probably forgetting."
"Look," said the donkey Councilor, "let me illuminate some things for you. The Forbidden Power is forbidden -- no one has acquired it and no one will. The Bibliophaetos is just a legend, perpetuated by your family."
"No, you look here, you arrogant bastard," Cloak said, finally losing his cool, "you don't know everything that you think you do. You sit there blissfully unaware of what occurs within and without the Nexus. You do nothing to endanger the seats that you so covet. Yet -- you have the gall to marginalize the Dwellers, to deprecate them -- even though they've proven themselves far more useful that you six put to together! And yet, you ridicule me for leaving. Ridicule me for getting tired of this Realm Walker superiority complex you've all have!! I prefer to associate with Dwellers because many of them, if not most, don't have their heads up their butts as you do!!!"
Cloak paused and gazed at each of them in turn, breathing very heavily. He was managing his emotions enough so he would not lose control over his powers. He thought that would only deepen their contempt and arrogance.
"You!" Cloak pointed an accusatory finger at the lion Councilor. "You . . . you are supposed to be renown for your courage and bravery. But, yet, here you sit, a coward, the fight beaten out of you. Scared to do anything about this! Scared to even check to see if Collector is even in the Gate Prison!"
"You!" Cloak pointed again, this time at the badger Councilor, who flinched. "You are supposed to be renown for the kindness of your heart. But, yet, here you sit, while innocents are slaughtered. While innocents are maimed. Just because they're Dwellers doesn't mean that they don't feel pain. What will your heart tell you if you knew that these innocent's pain were caused by a rogue Realm Walker or two?"
"You!" Cloak pointed again, this time to the snake Councilor, who wiggled a little. "You are supposed to be renown for your ambitions and cunning. You should be able to devise a way to trap and capture the rogue Realm Walkers. You should be able to device a method for seeing justice done. And, yet, you sit there. Idle. Motionless."
"You!" Cloak pointed at the golden eagle Councilor, who twitched a little. "You are supposed to be renown for your intelligence and wisdom. Surely, you must see that sitting here, doing nothing of real importance, isn't the wisest course? I know you probably don't want to interfere with the lives of Dwellers, I can understand that. But what about the rogue Realm Walkers who do not share such a compunction?"
"You!" Cloak pointed at the squirrel Councilor, who flinched terribly. "You are supposed to be renown for your pragmaticism. Is what you're doing really all that practical? Is what you're doing really very effective?"
"And you," Cloak said, turning toward the donkey Councilor, who was standing and had his arms haughtily folded against his chest. "You are simply an ass."
An uncomfortable silence greeted this monologue.
"Who are you to judge us?" the donkey Councilor said.
"Who are you to judge me?" Cloak countered.
Another pregnant silence, as Cloak came to a realization. "Oh, I see . . . you're afraid to
know, aren't you? You're all afraid that I might be right and you must do something.
Politicians! Well, if you don't want to know, and I can't convince you, I will no longer waste my energy with such futile efforts. Good-bye!"
"Wait, you leave when only we allow it!" the donkey Councilor called out after Cloak turned on his heel and strode toward the door.
"Oh, shut up for once!" the lion Councilor snarled at the donkey Councilor. Apparently, either Cloak's words wounded him deeply, go through to him, or perhaps a little of both.
